


Step Parent

by waterbird13



Series: Tumblr Fics [454]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Developing Relationship, Dummy has adjustment issues, M/M, MIT Era, atypical family situations, they're Dummy's parents
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-30
Packaged: 2018-11-07 03:13:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11050116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waterbird13/pseuds/waterbird13
Summary: Dummy is Tony's baby.





	1. Chapter 1

“Have you considered, potentially, that this is a terrible idea?” Rhodey asks. He sounds more amused than chastising, as he almost always does, so Tony disregards the message and continues to connect the wires.

“Let’s consider the impressive scientific breakthroughs about to happen here,” Tony says, pulling one hand free and going for his coffee, long since cold but still life-givingly caffeinated.

“Or the destruction.”

“Not always mutually exclusive.” Tony fiddles with the upload connection, checking the progress. “This one should work.”

Tony knows where Rhodey’s coming from and actually appreciates it. Most people don’t bother to worry about what Tony is doing because they don’t think he can do it. Think it would be out of Howard’s range, never mind his sixteen year old screwup of a kid. But Rhodey doesn’t doubt, he knows what Tony can do, and he thinks of the ramifications.

Everyone’s always been afraid of true intelligence, of robots with brains. Tony, though, Tony tosses out the shitty sci-fi and sees the future.

It’s almost done. Almost. Just a few more minutes and he’ll know if this one worked. Iteration one hundred seventeen. He hasn’t slept in thirty hours, so sure he’s close. If this one doesn’t work, he’s sure Rhodey will drag him away.

If this one doesn’t work, Tony might let him. He’s not sure yet where to go from here. He doesn’t want to have to go anywhere. He wants to succeed.

There’s a ding from the computer and then another from the robot. Tony feels like he’s holding his breath. “DUM-E?”

Rhodey snorts. “Seriously, that’s what you’re calling it?”

“Shut up, I can name my thinking robot whatever I want. You make one, you name it, that’s the deal.”

DUM-E lets out a series of beeps. “Are you…” Tony trails off. “DUM-E, beep eight times if you understand me.”

One, two, three…by the time they get to eight, Tony thinks he could cry. Rhodey’s hand is right on his shoulder.

There’s months of testing ahead of them, Tony has to find a way to prove DUM-E can pass the Turing Test, but he knows it in his gut, he built life tonight.

“Good God, Tony,” Rhodey breathes.

Tony feels like his grin is splitting his face open. “DUM-E, come say hi to your uncle Rhodey.”

The claw rolls forward slowly, beeping all the way.


	2. Chapter 2

Two years later, Tony’s trying to change DUM-E’s designation for Rhodey.

The Uncle Rhodey thing was cute and funny in the beginning, a way to say how much Rhodey meant to him without having to say it, but now it’s getting a bit incestuous, and Tony’s not about that.

Tony’s never set a designation for himself, has no idea what DUM-E calls him if he calls him anything. Sometimes, though, he does refer to himself, mostly jokingly, as Papa.

“Guess Rhodey’s more like your Dad now,” he muses to his robot one day. “Step Dad? I mean. You never had, like, a real Dad or whatever. So he’s just Dad.”

And it’s just that, just a joking thoughts, until Rhodey comes home on leave next time and kisses Tony and DUM-E, rather than greeting Rhodey as always, hides away in his charging station.

Tony laughs and laughs even as Rhodey looks a bit put out. “He’s like a kid!” He says. “A kid whose parent starts dating again.” DUM-E passed Turing Tests, but Tony is pretty sure this proves he’s a real intelligence more than almost anything else.

When Rhodey’s put out expression doesn’t go away, Tony sobers up. “C'mon, sourpuss, it’ll be fine,” he cajoles. “We’ll spend some time together, he’ll adapt, he’ll think of you as Dad in no time.”

DUM-E does not adapt. DUM-E does his best to avoid them for weeks, and will only come out to Tony when he’s alone. The night Rhodey walks in on the two of them is probably the most heartbreaking. Tony’s been trying to explain, that nothing is really changing, it’s just a word, they love Rhodey just as much, he’s even more part of the family now.

DUM-E scurries away, and Rhodey looks crestfallen. “Tony,” he says. “Let him be. It’s not like…we’ll never know, what word he uses, okay, so let him think however he wants about me. He clearly doesn’t like change.”

“No!” Tony says. “ He’s a learning robot, he’s meant to handle change. I…need to convince him this is okay, because we are family and you’ve always been there for him, just like I have, only now it’s better, and–”

Rhodey kisses him. Hard.

Two days later, Tony heads down to his lab only to find Rhodey sitting on one side of the glass door, and DUM-E on the other. Rhodey talks just loud enough to be heard, and only because DUM-E’s audio sensors are better than human ears. “I understand, you know,” he says. “You can call me whatever you want. I’m not trying to change anything on you, bud. Really. I just want you to know, I still care about you. Whatever you call me.”

DUM-E presses his claw against the lab door, and Tony takes that as his cue, stepping in, opening the door.

DUM-E comes out, claw extended, and clumsily–but gently–pats Rhodey’s shoulder, just like he did the first time Tony introduced them years before.

Tony’s pretty sure he’s crying, but Rhodey’s grin, blinding and bright, is distracting him from most everything else.

“I think he gets it,” Tony says. He sits in the floor with Rhodey, DUM-E’s claw between them, and pats his weird learning system robot child on the claw while watching the love of his life bond with their child.


End file.
